Since the tragic events of Aurora, CO, Sandy Hook elementary school, and the failed attempt on former Congresswomen Gabrielle Giffords life by deranged gunmen, members of Congress, agencies within the Federal government, and numerous other state legislatures have sought to put restrictions, or even all out bans, on the public ownership of guns and ammunition. However, in light of the evolution of local law enforcement from being a body of peace keepers to now becoming a militarized entity, Congress is upping the pressure against the people by debating a bill on Aug. 21 that would ban regular citizens from having the ability to purchase protective body armor, and leave themselves open for potential brutality by the police, or criminal elements that might seek to harm or even kill them.

Bill H.R. 5344 was introduced by Congressman Michael Honda, who represents the 17th district in the state of California. In the bill, Congressman Honda is seeking the abolition of the sale of any military or civilian grade protective gear, which would also include children's backpacks that have been tested to stop many calibers of bullets, and help save lives in the event of another school shooting.

H.R. 5344 is a bill currently going through Congress that would ban the purchase of body armor.

Violation would carry CRIMINAL penalties, including up to ten years in prison.

Many bullet-resistant items on the market now, such as bulletproof backpacks for school children, would be banned by this legislation.

This is incredible given that the legislation is all about banning something that is purely defensive.

So why in the world would they want to ban it?

The government claims that “criminals and rampaging madmen” can “wreak havoc” while wearing body armor, and it’s important to shield police from these nefarious individuals. - Sovereign Man Blog

The first publicized incident tied to the use of body armor worn by a perpetrator in the act of committing a crime occurred about 17 years ago in Hollywood, CA, where two men held off over 50 police officers by using full body armor and automatic weapons. During this event, the police were far over-matched when it came to sufficient firepower and defense protection to handle the perpetrators, with 11 officers and seven innocent civilians taking severe damage from the gunfire.

However, since that time the police have upgraded their arsenals, and improved their tactics to deal with such superior firepower. But even these increases in training, weapons, and SWAT units around the country were nothing compared to what has occurred since the Department of Defense and Homeland Security began programs to allow local police units to acquire military grade weaponry and body armor brought back from the battlefields of Iraq and Afghanistan in 2011.

If the events going on right now in Ferguson, MO are any indication, the potential for public mayhem and police standoffs are only going to increase as the economic structures of the United States continue to collapse. With so many people still out of work since the credit crisis of 2008, and an overall decline in real wages stretching back to the 1970's, the potential for both civil unrest and violent actions against the government are a growing and real possibility. And like the landscape in America where several government agencies and officials are passing new laws restricting the sale and purchase of certain types of guns and amounts of ammunition, bill H.R. 5344 will only create more animosity between the citizens and the state, and probably lead to panic buying and supply shortages, just as it did for many brands of ammo between the years of 2010-13.

Share this article

As a historian in his primary field of study, and an investor in the real world, Kenneth has a keen perspective on all facets of the financial world. He has owned his own business and corporation, and has been an investor in many different markets such as securities, real estate, currency trading, and international trusts. His desire is to provide you with the true understanding of markets and the economy, and to give you the information that will help you make your own decisions in these troubling, and quite often, fascinating times regarding your economic decisions. Kenneth is not a certified financial advisor, and his only goal is to give you true information, by which you can see things as they happen, and in many cases, before they happen.